Cap and package



Dec; 25, 1928. 1,696,330

. E. scoFlELD CAP AND PACKAGE Filed July 15. 1926 INVENTOR 2 [Xi/ya!Jicy'z'eld ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 25, 1928.

v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDGAR SOOFIELD, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO ANC HOR CAP & CLOSURECOR- PORATION, 0! LONG ISLAND CITY, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

CAP AND PACKAGE.

Application filed iui 15,

The present invention relates to sealed packages and closure capstherefor, and more particularly to a reinforced closure cap adapted tobe applied to a container to sustain the unbalanced external pressurethereon occasioned by the vacuum in the container.

In packaging foods and the like at' the present time the best results inpreservation are obtained by sealing the packages under a vacuum so thatthere is the smallest possible, quantity of air therein to causedeterioration and discoloration 'of the food. Many packers use thismethod almost exclusively and others use it to a considerable extent sothat a large portion of the food today is packed in this manner. Aconvenient way of forming the packages is by the utilization of aglasscontainer andforming a seal thereon by means of a closure cap andgasket. The seals may be formed in'some instances on the side of thecap, commonly known as the side seal, others at the rim of thecontainer, commonly known as an edge seal. In either event thedifference between the pressure on the inside and on the outside of thecontainer causes a very substantial force on the cover portion of thecap pressing it inwardly and exerting an upward pull on the skirt of thecap which distorts the seal to such an extent that leakers arefrequently formed and packages spoiled. Furthermore, forcing a thecenter portion downwardly detracts from the appearance of the packageand also decreases the vacuum in the container. The reason for thedecrease in vacuum is that the containers are sealed in vacuum chamberswhere the pressure may be only one or two pounds absolute and the sealis made while the small s ace above the food in the container is at t esame ressure. Thereafter atmospheric pressure orces the central portionof the cover downwardly decreasing considerably the empty space in thecontainer. Naturally, since the pressure in the container in creasesdirectly as the volume of the empty space decreases, the vacuum thereinmay be materially affected by the depression of the closure. This ismore particularly true where the size of the closure is large and theflexure great.

The present invention overcomes these difficulties by providing aclosure cap hav- 1926. Serial no. 122,515.

ing a reinforced cover portion adapted to hold 1ts shape irrespective ofthe size of the cap or degree of vacuum maintained in the 1 Such a captransfers the pres provided with a beaded skirt and gasket adapted toform a side seal on a vessel. annular portion adjacent the periphery ofthe cap is adapted to receive the rim of a container, the center portionof the cap being depressed below the plane of the cover to improve thegeneral appearance thereof. o

The reinforcing ribs may extend radially inwardly from the periphery ofthe de pressed portion partially across the center of the cap orcompletely across to prevent flexing of this portion thereof. Theeffectiveness of the ribs inay be further increased by bowing thedepressed portion upwardly into an archedportion to further increase theresistance of the cap to external pressure. but they are illustratedhaving an apex with a wider base portion, the size of the rib decreasingtoward the center of the cap.

An object of the invention is to provide a rigid closure from thin metaladapted to be uied on vacuum sealed containers and the li e. I

Another object of the invention is to re inforce a closure cap withoutdetracting from its appearance and without increasing the metal requiredtherefor.

Another object of the invention is to reinforce in an inexpensive mannera closure cap having a depressed center portion by providing inwardlyextending radial ribs adapted to prevent flexing thereof.

A further object of the invention is to reinforce the cover portion of aclosure cap by bowing upwardly the center portion thereof to provide anarch structure and by reinforcing said arch structure with radial ribsThe ribs may be of any desired shape v pended claims, and variousadvantages se cured by the invention other than those hereinspecifically referred to, will occur to one skilled in the art uponemployment of the invention in practice.

A preferred embodiment of the invention has been chosen for purposes ofillustration and description and is shown in the accompanying drawings,wherein Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the closure cap shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary, sectional view along the line of Fig.2 showing details thereof;

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of a closure cap having ribs extending throughthe center thereof;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view showing a side seal closure applied to acontainer;

Fig. 6 is a detailed view illustrating a preferred form of reinforcingrib; and

Fig. 7 is a sectional view along the line 77 of Fig. 6 showing detailsof the rein forcing rib.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a closure cap 10 having acover portion 11 with a depending skirt 12, having a head 14 adapted toseat a gasket 15. The central portion 16 of the cover of the cap isdepressed to form an annular inclined shoulder 17 leading to an annularflat portion 18 adjacent the periphery of the cover adapted to be seatedupon the rim 19 of a suitable container 20.

The depressed portion 16 of the cover may be bowed upwardly as shown at22 in Figs. 3 and 5 to form an arched construction to give greaterstrength. Suitable reinforcing means 24, here shown as ribs extendinginwardly from the periphery of the depressed portion toward the centerof the cap and ending adjacent the center thereof, are provided tostrengthen further the depressed portion adjacent its periphery and toprevent it from being flexed downwardly into the container when it issubjected to atmospheric pressure on the outside while a partial vacuumis maintained on the inside thereof. Any desired number of ribs may beutilized to effect the additional strength of the closure withoutmar-ring its appearance. The ribs may be formed by a suitable dieadapted to press a portion of the metal out of its natural plane.Preferably the ribs have an apex 25 inereasingas it approaches the planeof the cover into a wider base portion. The size of the rib may decreaseas it approaches the center of the cap, since the tendency of the cap tobend decreases as the distance from the outer pcriphery increases.

In Fig. 4 the ribs 2-1 are shown extending completely across the centerof the depressed portion of the cap. Such a construction is particularlyuseful with caps having a fiat cover portion and gives added strength tocaps such as that shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3.

The present invention is applicable to all types of caps and isparticularly useful in caps having a substantial diameter such as areused on small containers for preserves and the like which may be sealedin any suitable manner. One way of forming a side seal on a container isto place the container or the upper portion thereof in a vacuum chamberand utilize dies or spinning. rolls to force the gasket 15 out of thebead against the side wall of the container as shown in Fig. 5 of thedrawings. Immediately that the cap is hermetically sealed on thecontainer in the vacuum chamber, air is permitted to enter and theexcessive force. of the atmospheric pressure acting over the area of thecover portion, which may exceed three square inches, bends the centralportion of the cap into the container and. decreases materially thespace between the cap and the contents. of the receptacle. The decreasein volume of the free space within the container lowers the vacuum.Since the degree of vacuum attainable by sealing ma.- chines is definiteso far as commercial oper: tion is concerned, it follows that a highervacuum can be obtained with the present type of closure than is possiblewith the forms heretofore used, or the same degree of vacuum obtained inthe package with less expensive machines. The ribs in the pres entclosure effectively prevent any substantial decrease in the amount ofspace in the container and maintain substantially the same vacuum asthat to which thecontainer is subjected in the sealing operation. Itwill be appreciated that, since the space above the contents in acontainer may not exceed one-quarter of an inch in depth, the flexing ofthe closure to the extent of oneeighth of an inch substantially halvesthe free space therein which results in decreasing the effective vacuumin like proportion.

It will be seen that the present invention provides a very inexpensiveclosure which effectively preserves the degree of vacuum to whichpackages are subjected at the time of sealing, by preventing a decreasein the amount of free space in the container by flexing of the closure.Further, the seal of the closure is not subjected to forces tending todraw it over the mouth of the container since substantially the entireatmospheric pressure is supported by the rim of the receptacle. Thisprevents the formation of leaks due to excessive pull on the skirt ofthe cap. Further the caps may be readily and inexpensively manufacturedto withstand the rough handling to which packages may be subjected.

As various changes may be made in the above embodiment without departingfrom g the spirit of the invention, it is to be understood that allmatterherein set forth is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in alimiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture, a closure cap comprising a coverportion and reinforcing means decreasing in size toward the center andextending through substantially the center of said cover portion toprevent flexing thereof.

2. As an article of manufacture, a closure cap comprising a cover havinga depressed portion bowed upwardlyat its center into a substantiallyspherical portion and reinforcing ribs decreasing in size toward thecenter of the cap to prevent deformation of said bowed portion.

3. As an article of manufacture, a closure cap comprising a cover havinga depressed portion bowed upwardly at its center and reinforcing ribsextending inwardly from the periphery of said depressed portion, saidribs having their greatest depth adjacent said periphery and decreasingin depth toward the center of said bowed portion.

4. As an article of manufacture, a closure cap comprising a cover havinga depressed portion and reinforcing ribs formed by metal pressedupwardly out of the plane of the depressed portion, said ribs decreasingin size as they approach the center of the cap.

5. As an article of manufacture, a closure cap comprising a coverportion, reinforcing 'ribs extendinginwardly toward the center of saidcap, said reinforcingribs decreasing in size as they approach the centerwhereby the portion of said cap subjected to the greatest bendingforoeis reinforced most.

6. As an article of manufacture, a closure cap comprising a coverportion, a depending skirt, an annular portion adjacent the skirtadapted to accommodate the rim of a container, and a depressed centerportion ha-ving reinforcing ribs extending radially from the peripherythereof, said ribs decreasing in size as they approach the center of thecap. 7

7. A sealed package comprising a container, a closure cap extending overthe mouth of said container with a skirt depending downwardly about theside wall thereof,

and tapered reinforcing ribs extending totion of sa-id'cap decreasing insize toward the center thereof. 7 v a 9. A hermetically sealed "packagecomprising a container, a closure cap extending over the mouth thereof,reinforcing ribs decreasing in size as they approach the center toprevent flexing thereof under atmospheric pressure when avacuuxnisformed 1n the container.

10. As an article of manufacture, a closure cap comprising a coverportion, reinforcing means extend ng inwardly to the center of said cap,said reinforcing means decreasing in size as they approach the centerwhereby the portion of said'capsu'bjected to the greatest bendingforceis reenforced most.

EDGAR SOOFIELD.

